My Precious Jewel
by Serenity-Hermione Angel
Summary: Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, and Ruebus. All the precious stones present, but one. There really was an Amethyst. And when the Black Moon Clan is revived, Prince Diamond makes it his mission to find his old love.
1. Return

My Precious Jewel

Summary: Diamond, Sapphire, Emerald, and Rubeus. All precious stones are accounted for, except Amethyst. There really was an Amethyst, though, only she happened to be missing from the Black Moon Family for centuries. All this is about to change when the family is revived, and Diamond finds his love again. However, she is not how he last left her.

Chapter 1

Prince Diamond looked sullenly at his wine, swishing it lightly and watching as the legs formed in the glass. The wine was good, no doubt, but he was not in the mood. In fact, he hadn't been in the mood to indulge in his once-favorite activity, wine tasting, since his revival. His brother and Emerald worried constantly about him for this, whispering to one another often at meals about how they needed to discover what was ailing their prince, although neither did. Not even the frank Rubeus bothered to ask. It seemed almost rude to, even for him.

"Is it just a side effect?" Emerald whispered to Sapphire behind her fan.

"It cannot possibly be. None of us have been affected. Each of us still partakes in what used to please us before our demise. Diamond seems to be the only one who is ailing so," Sapphire replied.

"Maybe he's sulking over the loss of Serenity, again?" Rubeus offered. He hadn't bothered to whisper; he knew it was fruitless to hide what they were saying from Diamond.

"Do you children think that Neo-Queen Serenity is all that my mind can possibly obsess about?" Diamond asked calmly, still observing the wine.

Emerald laughed nervously at getting caught, which caused everyone else to wince. Her laugh was too much. "Dear one, who else could you be thinking about so intensely?"

Diamond glanced at the three before taking the first sip of his wine. It was fantastic, some of the best he had ever tasted in any of his lifetimes, but he still felt unfulfilled. He set the glass down at the table before him and sighed quietly. At least they were alive. That much all of them had to be grateful for.

After their demise at the hands of the senshi in their own time period, the four members of the Black Moon Family had been reduced to the gemstones of their names, left about the Crystal Tokyo grounds as if they mattered naught. Someone had come along, revived their lives, and taken them back to the 21st century. Powers mostly gone, they lived in an apartment in the Juuban District together with money left by their nameless benefactor happily until one evening when Emerald had gone out shopping. She ran into Avery, who instantly recognized her and reached for her senshi communicator to warn the senshi of their return. Not wanting to cause any useless trouble, the family moved into a house on the outskirts of the Tokyo city limits. Their new neighborhood was small and friendly, and quite welcoming to their new neighbors. With what little powers they had left, they used their influence over their separate gemstones to open a small jewelry store, which kept them living comfortably.

"Neo-Queen Serenity was not the woman for me, nor was she ever. She was just a youthful fantasy," Diamond said calmly. He closed his eyes and caught a brief glance of the woman he spoke of, only in her form of their century. She was sitting in the Hikawa Shrine, surrounded by her inner senshi friends and being held from behind by her lover, Mamoru. He kissed her on the temple, and she smiled joyously. The image went from Diamond's mind and he sighed. He would be lying if he claimed he did not care of the girl a great deal, and he would be a sinner if he said that he was not jealous. But no one quite knew his exact reasons for jealousy except for him.

"What are you so lost in thought about then, brother?" Sapphire asked.

"I'm remembering someone," Diamond said softly.

Rubeus caught the reference instantly. His eyes softened in sadness and memory. "You cannot possibly mean--,"

"Yes," Diamond replied.

"Oh Diamond," Emerald muttered sadly. Emerald turned to Sapphire, tears swimming in her eyes. "Sapphire, you must convince him she's gone for good. He's going to drive himself mad thinking she's alive."

Sapphire sighed and looked up at his brother. "Diamond, you know she's never going to come back. She disappeared before we even attacked this era. She never reduce into a gem like we did, Diamond. She's gone."

Diamond said nothing. He took one last look at his wine and left the dining room. When he entered his own bedroom, he opened a drawer of his desk and pulled out a disk, which he placed on his bed. At the push of a button, a holographic image appeared before him, one that was enough to bring him to tears.

"My Amethyst," he whispered.

(Flashback)

_"Diamond, Diamond look!" a joyous voice cried out. A beautiful young woman ran down the hill and almost collapsed into the chest of the man she was addressing. "Oh Diamond, look! Isn't it beautiful?" She held out her hands and showed him the blood-red rose in her hands. _

_ "My Amethyst, there is not a thing in any world as beautiful as you," Diamond said softly. Amethyst blushed as he gently caressed her cheek and he smiled down at her. "Now, where did you find such a flower? Surely not here." He gestured around at the dismal grounds on which they stood. The grass was green, but did not shine. The trees were alive with leaves, only they were all brown. The sky was brilliant for this time of the day, only that wasn't saying much considering the color was close to a navy-blue. _

_ "I found it," Amethyst replied cheekily. _

_ "Give it here, my love," Diamond said. He took the rose from her and gently fastened it behind her right ear, tucking some of her purple-black hair out of her face. "There. Now I can properly see the face of the one I love."_

_ "Oh Diamond, you're so ridiculous!" Amethyst giggled. Her violet eyes glittered in happiness at him. "Won't Emerald be jealous? After all, she is in love with you."_

_ "And I am in love with you," Diamond replied._

_ "And I cannot do with having my best friend in love with my lover," Amethyst said. _

_ "Fiancée," Diamond corrected. _

_ The smile fell off of Amethyst's flawless face. Her eyes turned wide and her mouth fell open. She would have fainted had Diamond's arms not suddenly been around her waist. "W—what?"_

_ "Marry me, Amethyst. Become my queen when I take Earth. You will have two worlds bowing down at your feet, Emerald included. Your every happiness will be granted to you," Diamond declared. _

_ Amethyst said nothing. She stood on her tip-toes and kissed him firmly on the lips. When they parted, she laughed breathlessly. "Of course I'll marry you. I love you."_

(End Flashback)

The next morning, she was gone. Diamond had woken up to find her not beside him, but he was not surprised, for she usually went back to her own bedroom in the morning to 'keep up appearances'. He figured she had gone to her own room, but when he got there, she was no where to be found. Every article of her clothing, all of her jewelry, and even every pair of her shoes were present and accounted for. Even the dress she had been wearing the day before, the beautiful violet gown with jade accents that she wore just for him, was hung up in her closet as if it was never worn. Diamond went immediately from room to room, and was shocked and devastated not to find her in a single one.

It was typical for her to disappear for a few days at a time, but Diamond had hoped she would have stayed after the proposal. Surely their upcoming nuptials would be enough to root her forever in their home. But Diamond was patient and knew that she would return soon.

Yet this time, she did not. Three months went by and there was no word from her. Even her father, Jaden, was clueless to the whereabouts of his daughter. It was at this point that Diamond ordered a massive search of the planet for his lover. The people of Nemesis searched day and night for her, the planet determined to find the beloved girl. But after another month, they knew they had to stop. A memorial service was held and the planet mourned the loss of the dark-haired beauty. She was gone.

A short time after, the planet fell mysteriously asleep. When they awoke, time had been moved a substantial amount and they found themselves in the 30th Century. Diamond went to Earth in search of his love, hoping she may be there, but was disgusted to find that she was not only not there, but that the planet had been purified and now had a ruler. Annoyed with this prospect, Diamond returned to his home and decided that their plans to take over Earth would continue. He put aside his hurt over losing his love for the time being and decided to launch and attack on Crystal Tokyo.

Diamond sighed as he thought back to that time. He was so young, so foolish. He knew that the only reason he fell in love with Neo Queen Serenity was because the fierceness in her eyes reminded him of the fire that was always alit in Amethyst's.

With one last glance at the image on his beautiful love, Diamond pressed the button and put her away. There was only so much pain he could take in one day.

"Oh Diamond," Emerald sighed. She had decided to follow him back to his room to make sure he was alright and was heartbroken to find that he was, once again, staring at Amethyst. "She's gone Diamond. Forever."

-End of chapter

I know it was super short, but I promise there is more to come VERY soon if you review. (AKA: Chapter 2 is always written). Please review!

-Serenity


	2. Father and Mother

Chapter 2: Father and Mother

Thanks for reviewing! As a quick note, I had to search Youtube for the thing that Rei says in Sailor Moon S when she's reading the fire. I always liked it (especially when they used it in the bump on Toonami. Ahh, the good old day of Cartoon Network after school programming) so I wanted to use it. I don't know if it's totally right because the only clip I found was kind of not easy to hear.

Anyways, enjoy!

* * *

Rei knelt before her fire and concentrated. She had had a strange feeling for a while now and knew that she needed to consult her fire. She tried to calm her speeding heart as she prepared to read the fire. The last time she had an unnerving feeling like this it meant the destruction of the world. Sure, with the help of her friends, they had stopped it, but there was no getting rid of the type of feeling one gets when one sees their friends and family being destroyed.

"Sun, Moon, Star, Earth. Fire, Air, Water, Rock. I am flame, flame is light," Rei said. Instantly, she was flooded with quick moving images, all too quick for her to get a grasp on them. It only lasted a few seconds before she was met with black. "Wh—what was that?" Maybe her heart was pounding too quickly? Maybe she hadn't cleared her mind enough? After a deep, calming breath, Rei tried again. But once more, the same thing occurred. This time, Rei only caught a brief glimpse of something that was green. Green?

"Rei-chan? Rei!" Usagi called out.

Rei sighed in frustration. "Might as well. I didn't get any help here." Rei rose and put out her fire.

"Hey Rei-chan. Are you alright?" Usagi asked as she approached her friend. Minako was right behind her.

Rei glanced back the fire before closing the door and going outside to meet up with her friends. "I'm alright."

"Were you reading?" Minako asked.

Rei leaned against the door. "I was trying to, at least. I've been having this nagging feeling lately and I thought that I could find the answer in the fire." She shook her head. "I didn't get anything but a bunch of random flashes of images. And something green. I just can't figure what out what any of it meant."

"Is something coming?" Usagi asked. She looked around uneasily.

"I don't think so. It wasn't that kind of feeling," Rei shrugged. "I'm sure it's nothing."

"Rei, you don't usually have those feelings for no reason at all," Minako said. "Back in the Silver Millennium, your feelings usually meant something major was about to happen."

"I don't know. This time was different from the other times." Rei took a breath. "I'll try again later." She said more to herself then the other. She then smiled at her friend. "So what's up?"

Minako and Usagi exchanged confused and worried glances before replying.

"We were going to a movie and were wondering if wanted to come with us. Ami isn't going but Makoto is going to meet us there," Minako replied.

"I'm going to have to decline, girls. I'm sure I won't be able to focus until I have this figured out. Thanks, though." Rei offered them a small smile before turning away from them.

"Rei?" Usagi called out cautiously. Rei paused. "Rei, we're here for you."

"Yeah. You don't have to go through anything alone. We're here whenever you need us," Minako added.

Rei turned to them and gave them a sincere smile. "Thanks you guys. I'll let you know if I learn anything new. Go have fun."

"Are you sure?" Minako asked.

Rei nodded. "Yeah. I have chores to do, anyway." Rei turned away from her friends again and went back into the house, where she drew herself a bath. Once she sunk into the tub, she sighed. What was it? What had she seen? She closed her eyes and tried to focus. It was then that she was overcome with a vision.

_"Mother, where is my father? I cannot seem to remember him. Is he dead? Where is he?" a young princess Rei said. She was six-years-old. _

_"Sweetheart, I don't understand why you're so worried about it," Queen Ardere said. She tied off the end of her raven braid with her favorite jade green ribbon and turned around to face her daughter. When she held out her arms, Rei came forward. "My little fire, what is the matter? Are you not happy here with me?" Ardere pulled her daughter into her lap and began to brush her hair with her ruby-studded brush._

_"I'm very happy here! I love being here," Rei insisted._

_"Then what is wrong? You have never asked me about him before," Ardere asked._

_"I was just thinking about how the other girls all have a father and I don't. I can't even remember him. When did he die?" Rei asked. _

_Ardere stopped her brushing and sighed. She looking into her daughter's eyes from the mirror. "He isn't dead, my love." Pain flashed quickly on Ardere's face when Rei's eyes lit up. _

_"Where is he? Why isn't he here with us? Can we go visit him?" Rei asked. _

_Ardere gave her daughter a soft, sad smile. "Yes baby, you can." _

_A smile bloomed across the child's face. Happily she bounded off her mother's lap. "I'm going to see my daddy! I'm going to see my daddy!" She turned around to face her mother. "When can I go?"_

_"Today, if you wish," Ardere replied. That set the little girl off again, Rei happily running around the room and giggling. Ardere laughed and pulled her daughter back onto her lap. She reached into a drawer and pulled something out. "Come here, my little fire. Let's get you ready to see your daddy."_

Rei gasped and pulled herself back up to the surface. It was a wonder that she hadn't drowned. How long had she been under water for?

"Rei? Rei, are you alright?" Grandpa Hino called through the door urgently. "Rei, are you okay? I heard thrashing."

"I'm—I'm alright," Rei replied shakily. She carefully pulled herself into a sitting position and sat there until she felt her heart return to a normal speed. Once it did, she pulled herself out of the tub and dried her body off. Once she was dry, she slipped on her robe and began to brush her hair. As she did, she felt a strange tingling feeling. It was the exact feeling the six-year-old Princess Rei felt when her mother had brushed her hair. The feeling scared her out so much that she dropped her brush on the floor. What was going on?

"Grandpa?" Rei called out.

"Yes Rei?" Grandpa replied a few minutes later. He opened the door and came into the room cautiously. "Are you okay? What happened?"

"Oh nothing. I must have dozed off while taking my bath." Rei waved her hand at the matter. "Grandpa, do you remember my mother?"

Grandpa smiled. "I do."

"What was she like?" Rei asked.

"She was a kind woman. She was beautiful, too, just like you. And she made your father smile in ways I've rarely seen," Grandpa said.

"Did she ever brush my hair for me?" Rei asked.

Grandpa nodded. "You used to love it when she did."

"Thank you, Grandpa," Rei replied. She picked up her brush and set it on the counter.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Grandpa asked.

"Yes, I am. Thank you. I'll be along shortly to do my chores," Rei said.

"Alright," Grandpa said. He left her bathroom and went to go greet some young girls who had showed up, almost instantly forgetting about the troubles his beloved granddaughter was having.

Rei spent the remainder of her day wondering about her vision. Clearly, it was of her and her mother from the past. She pondered for a while over the beauty of her mother. This was the first time she had ever seen her past mother.

"Ardere. What a beautiful name," Rei murmured out loud.

"Did you just say Ardere?" Luna asked.

"Ahh!" Rei shrieked. When she saw Luna, she calmed down. "Luna, don't do that! What if someone heard you?"

"No one is around," Luna said. She observed the fire senshi. "Did you really say 'Ardere'?"

Rei nodded. "I did."

"Do you know what that means?" Luna asked as she jumped up on the platform to sit. Rei shook her head as she joined the black cat. "It means fire."

Rei gave a small laugh. "Appropriate."

"Do you know who Ardere is?" Luna asked.

"She was my mother, wasn't she?" Rei asked.

"Rei, how do you know this?"

"I—I had a vision of her."

"Rei! That's amazing news! None of the other girls are yet to have these types visions." Luna beamed at Rei. "You affinity is truly amazing."

"You remember my mother?" Rei asked.

Luna nodded. "I remember all of your mothers. They were all dear friends of mine." It was then that Rei realized that Luna was around the same age as their mothers would have been. She felt shameful for never having noticed before. She wondered what it must be like to have to babysit a bunch of teenagers all the time instead of being able to have a conversation with adults. "Rei-san, what happened in your vision?"

"We were talking about me seeing my father. Luna, do you know who he is?" Rei asked.

Sadly, Luna shook her head. "Unfortunately, I do not. Ardere was always very secretive about who your father was. She never even let Queen Serenity know who he was, which we all considered blasphemous. But Queen Serenity was a good queen and forgave Ardere her secrets. Queen Serenity was just grateful that you came into the world."

Rei smiled sadly. "So no one knows who he was?"

"I'm sorry, Rei-san. Ardere took that information with her to her grave," Luna said.

"I've been having weird feelings lately, so I tried to consult the fire. But it gave me nothing to go off of. It was just a bunch of quick flashes, quicker then I've ever seen, and all I was left with was something green. I have a feeling, I--," she sighed, "I just don't know what it means."

"What kind of feeling?" Luna asked, standing up suddenly and alert.

"No, no, Luna. Not a feeling like that. It's a different kind of feeling. It feels like I'm trying to remember something that just won't surface," Rei said, finally putting her finger on the feeling.

"Perhaps they're just memories from the Silver Millennium. You know, you should really talk to Minako about that feeling. The poor thing has most of her memories," Luna said.

"I already saw Minako today," Rei replied.

"Hmm. Perhaps I should call Artemis and he can offer you some help? He did help Minako-chan when she regained all of hers," Luna offered.

Rei nodded. "That would probably be helpful." She reached forward to give Luna a loving scratch on the head. "Thank you, Luna."

Luna bid Rei a goodbye before heading off to retrieve Artemis. Rei went back to her chores, not noticing that she was sweeping the same area over and over again. It didn't escape her attention that her guardian birds, Deimos and Phobos, were watching over her with concern. Rei set her broom down and held her hands out to them.

"Do you girls know what's going on?" Rei asked them.

Neither gave any inclination that they knew, only that they were concerned for her. Yet still, they seemed at ease. They didn't act like they sensed any evil, or there was anything wrong. Deimos reached her head forward and affectionately nudged Rei's cheek.

"I wish I knew, too," Rei muttered in reply.

"Miss, excuse me, miss?" a girl called out. Rei allowed her birds to fly away and went to assist the girl.

Artemis and Luna showed up an hour later, unaccompanied by the others. They were amused by the way people stared at them curiously, accepting the caresses from little girls and running from the impending abuse of little boys. They ran to where they found Rei, sitting in front of her fire. They quietly stood by the door, waiting for her to finish. Luna became concerned instantly, though, when she saw the perspiration on Rei's face. She was concentrating, concentrating hard. Her teeth were clenched hard and she seemed to be fighting something, or possibly forcing something. Just as Luna and Artemis decided that they should interrupt her, Rei threw her head back and gasped for air.

"Rei-san!" They called out as they rushed to her side.

Rei was breathing hard and looked ready to collapse.

"Rei, what did you see?" Artemis asked.

"I tried—I tried so hard. I couldn't," Rei groaned in frustration, "I couldn't get a grasp on it!" She slammed her fist on the ground.

"What was it, Rei? What were you trying to see?" Luna urged.

Rei opened her eyes. "More green. All I could get a grasp on was green. Green and white."

"Green and white?" Luna repeated.

"Green and white," Rei confirmed. She gave a heavy sigh and brushed a tear from her cheek. "I don't understand." She looked over at the two cats. "Do those colors mean anything to you two? I know that it's linked to the past, I can feel that strongly, but all I'm getting is those colors. And every time I try to dig further, I can only see black."

"Are you sure it has nothing to do with Makoto?" Artemis offered.

Rei shook her head instantly. "No, it doesn't feel like something dealing with her at all."

"The White Moon Family?" Luna asked. "Could you be remembering something that happened on the Moon?"

"No, neither. It has nothing to do with the girls at all," Rei insisted. She closed her eyes and tried again to grasp the feeling, but once more couldn't keep a hold on any of it.

"You should lie down," Luna said. She could tell that this was taking a major toll on the Martian Senshi.

Rei didn't argue. She went into her room, Luna and Artemis following at her side. Rei was shocked to find a tray waiting by her bed, looking as though it was put there recently. All of her shades had been drawn and it looked as though her grandfather and Yuuichirou were attempting to give her a quiet space. She smiled at their thoughtfulness and made her way to the tray. She hadn't even thought to eat since she woke up.

"Rei-san, Luna told me that you saw your mother," Artemis brought up cautiously after a little while. The two were resting on Rei's bed while she ate the meal.

"I did," Rei responded.

"What did you see?" Artemis asked.

"She was braiding her hair. She had such beautiful hair, the same color as mine. But her eyes were brown," Rei recalled thoughtfully.

"Queen Ardere was a beautiful woman," Artemis agreed.

"Rei, how did you come to know her name? You said that only the two of you were present in the memory. Surely you would not have addressed her by her name," Luna asked.

Rei shrugged. "I don't know. My memory just supplied me with the name. I saw her face and I knew immediately that she was my mother and that her name was Ardere."

"What happened in the vision?" Artemis asked.

"I was probably around six and I was asking her about my father. I wanted to know if he was alive or dead. Ardere told me that he was and that I could go see him that day and that she was going to help me get ready. And that's all," Rei replied.

"Your father?" Artemis gasped.

"So you don't know either, huh?" Rei asked.

"No, I'm afraid Ardere never disclosed that information to anyone. For some odd reason she made sure no one knew. Not even you ever talked about him," Artemis said.

"I didn't? But—my vision. I clearly met him at least once," Rei argued.

"I'm sorry, Rei, but never once did you mention him. The other mothers tried often to get it out of you, too. Poor Cytheria was going absolutely mad not knowing," Luna said.

"Who was Cytheria the other of?" Rei asked.

"Minako," Artemis and Luna replied.

Rei gave a short laugh. "Figures Mina-chan's mom would hate not knowing gossip." She set her chopsticks down and stacked her dishes. "I really never mentioned my father? Not to any of the girls? Not to anyone at all?"

Luna shook her head. "Not even an accidental slip. It was as if he never existed."

"Did you see anything else? Anything unusual?" Artemis pushed.

"She did look sad when I mentioned my father. As if it pained her to mention him," Rei remembered.

"It's like after you were born. She'd burst into tears the instant anyone even whispered mention of your father," Luna said to Artemis.

Rei turned around to look at the two. "Why am I having this memory now?"

"I'm not sure. It's like with Minako's memories. They just surfaced out of nowhere one morning. It was quite the frightening affair, actually. She woke me up, freaking out about how she saw Serenity and Endymion get murdered and how she could remember having blood on her hands." Artemis shuddered at the memories.

Rei shuddered. "Let's just hope I don't experience anything quite like that."

"Rei, you should get some rest. Maybe some more will come to you in your dreams," Luna advised.

Rei nodded. That did seem logical. She bid the cats a goodnight and thanked them for their advice. As she settled herself in her bed, she thought to clear her head of the entire day. Perhaps she could sleep in peace.

She was wrong.

* * *

-End of chapter!

I've never written from Rei's perspective and I have found that she's a bit hard to get into the head of at first. But I feel that with time, I'll have perfected having a grasp on her. Please review, you guys! It inspires me to write more, and faster.

-Serenity


	3. Dreams

Chapter 3: Dreams

Thank you all for reading, and welcome to my new readers! Sorry it took me a while. Enjoy!

* * *

Turmoil. There was turmoil everywhere. Fear, too, that was nearly palpable. A deep-rooted worry, but that was to be expected with the fear. There was something wrong, something so very wrong, but what? What was coming? What was that on the horizon?

"Amethyst, where are you?" Diamond asked, looking around wildly. Something was coming and he needed to find his love. The sky was so much darker then usual and an eeriness in the air that chilled him to his bones.

"Diamond! Prince Diamond, you have to come! Please Prince Diamond, you have to come inside!" a guard called.

"No, not until I've found her," Diamond insisted.

"Diamond, you have to come inside," Sapphire called, coming to the door of the palace. He looked panicked.

"No!" Diamond screamed back.

He felt a small hand on resting between his shoulder blades. Diamond's heart leapt as he turned, and he felt it plummet into his stomach when he saw green instead of purple.

"Diamond, please, you must come inside. We have no idea what's coming and we cannot risk your life," Emerald begged. She grabbed his hand and stared into his eyes. "Please."

Diamond looked out onto the grounds and shivered as a chilling wind blew past them. Emerald shivered and Diamond tucked her into his side as they ran back into the palace.

"Diamond, we have to protect the family," Sapphire said. The family and a handful of guards stood in the foyer of the castle, the dark marble cold and unwelcoming. Diamond nodded in understanding and produced the Dark Crystal. Sapphire put his hands around it as well and together they used its power to barricade the door. Once it was secure, they went to stand back with the others. Emerald was cowering with Petz and Calaveras on the loan chase lounge, Berthier and Kōan huddled with Rubeus near a column. There was a deep sense of apprehension as they waited whatever was coming. They never even guessed what it was.

Diamond woke up with a start. He wished it had been a nightmare, wished it had all been a fabrication of his own subconscious, but he knew that was a lie. The memory was sharp and painful. Had it really been a couple thousand years ago? It felt too fresh, too near his recent memory. It was his last memory, after all.

That was the day everything froze. Whatever the force was, it penetrated even the power of the Dark Crystal. Diamond remembered the cold, remembered holding close to the girls as he, his brother, and Rubeus attempted to warm them to the best of their abilities. They piled every fur, every rug, every scrap of fabric they could around themselves, attempted to barricade them in the safety of the palace. It had all been in vain, however, and they had woken up thousands of years later.

Diamond remembered how it had felt when they woke up. Everything was too warm and the family had had to push through the piles of fabric above their heads to free themselves. No one could remember falling asleep, not a single one of them having any idea what had happened. Things had just suddenly become warm and the strange feeling each of them had felt before had vanished. Slowly, they emerged from the safety of the palace to see what had happened. Diamond could remember how things looked even more barren. What had happened to their beautiful home?

Diamond reached onto his nightstand and grabbed for a small glass of water. As he gulped at the contents of the glass, he was not at all surprised to fine the bittersweet taste of wine instead of water. Had he done that? Diamond couldn't remember. He sighed and attempted to drift back off into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

Rei dressed herself in her uniform, avoiding the mirror as she did so. She knew that her face told of her restless sleep, heavy bags beneath her violet eyes. How was it that she couldn't remember her dream?

Rei chewed on her lip and attempted to search her mind once more for the contents of her dream. All she could remember was a sense of turmoil mixed with a sense of complete calmness. Being left with only these conflicting emotions was enough to drive Rei mad with wonderment. What could a dream possibly be able that contained both extreme fear and complete comfort?

"Rei-san, are you alright?" Luna asked. She was perched on Rei's bed, observing the raven haired beauty all morning. She knew that she would have to leave soon to go get Usagi ready for school, but she needed to stay with Rei just a moment longer. It was apparent that the girl was upset.

"I don't know, Luna," Rei replied truthfully. She pulled a brush through her locks once more before turning to her table. She knelt down before a small mirror and applied two cold spoons under her eyes. She remembered hearing some of the girls in her class talk about how they dealt with haggard appearances after long nights and recalled one method of eliminating bags from underneath ones eyes. She held the cold metal to her eyes, trying not to wince away from the feeling of it.

"Rei, perhaps you should try to consult your fire before you leave for school. Surely you won't be able to focus on your studies whilst distracted by your dreams. I've never seen you this distracted before," Luna advised.

Rei sighed as she pulled the spoons from her eyes. She inspected her work and realized that the method had worked. She could only wonder for how long, however. She rose from her position and looked at the black cat.

"I'm going to try a new method today: distraction. Maybe if I distract my mind with classes then I'll be able to accidently drift into a state where I can remember what happened," Rei explained. She glanced at the clock. "I've got a bus to catch and you've got a Usagi to wake up. Thank you Luna!"

Rei walked down the steps of the shrine and onto the bus that would take her part of the way to school. She tried for the entirety of the ride to avoid a single thought of her dreams the night before, attempting instead to people watch. But it seemed that the need to remember what she had been dreaming about was too strong and she found herself constantly being drawn back into that line of thought. She was practically radiating with frustration when she arrived at her school, ignoring the excited greetings of the girls around her.

Rei relished in her suddenly busy school today. Her teachers began piling on the workload, requesting chapters to be read and papers to be written. Soon, Rei had all but forgotten her constant dreams and was instead trying to think of how she was going to balance all of this work along with her duties as a shrine maiden and her senshi training. Rei apologized to those she had ignored before and enjoyed her usual social lunch hour, followed by even more intense classes.

Unfortunately, though, Rei did not slip into that unaware form of thinking when a persons memory wanders off on its own and finds something hidden, something unexpected. No, her mind stayed focused, and when it did allow itself to wander, Rei found that it strayed to little things, like if she should try a new hairstyle or if Usagi was late to school that morning. By the time Rei's day was over, she was exhausted mentally. Try as she might, she could not force her mind to drift off enough to unlock the secrets of her dream.

Rei resisted the urge to tell her friends not to come, but realized that perhaps she needed their companionship. Most importantly, she needed Minako's. After what Artemis had told her before, Minako may be able to help her.

"Hey Rei-chan!" The girls cooed in their greeting as they came up the steps.

Rei greeted them halfheartedly. Setting her broom down, she went to see her friends.

"Hey Rei-chan, are you doing alright?" Usagi asked.

Rei didn't even blink. "What do you mean, Usagi? I'm fine."

"Luna almost missed getting me up this morning," Usagi continued, hoping that she wouldn't have to come out and just say what Luna had told her that morning.

"Which is why you should invest in an alarm, clock, Usagi-baka!" Rei snapped. She looked at the other girls. "How was the English test?"

"A bit difficult."

"Took me a minute, but I got it."

"I found it rather easy."

Makoto and Minako turned to glare at Ami, who promptly blushed and looked away. Usagi was still wondering at Rei's attitude. While it was normal for the two to bicker, Rei had been much better about it as of late. After all, there had not been hide nor hair of a youma lately, and Luna had only told her that Rei was suffering from mysterious dreams. Were the dreams really affecting her _this_ dramatically?

After an hour, Ami had to depart for her pre-pre-med class at her mother's hospital. Not but fifteen minutes later, Makoto left for her karate class. Nearly an hour later, Usagi left for dinner, Minako at her heels.

"Minako, please wait," Rei called out.

"Mina-chan, do you want me to wait for you?" Usagi asked.

Minako shook her head. "It's alright, Usagi-chan. Go ahead home before your mother gets mad."

"Alright. Ja ne!" Usagi called out.

"Rei-chan, what's up?" Minako asked as she made her way back into Rei's room.

Minako was shocked to find the usually strong looking Rei sitting curled up against her bed, a defeated and vulnerable look on her face. Minako immediately went to her, kneeling down next to her and putting her hands on Rei's arm.

"Rei, what's wrong?"

"Minako, Artemis told me that you remember our past better then the rest of us," Rei said quietly.

Minako nodded. "Yes, I do have rather acute memories. Why? What's wrong?"

"Do you remember Cytheria?"

Minako gasped. "You know my mother's name?"

Rei nodded. "I know mine as well."

Minako grinned. "Oh Rei, that's fantastic! Wasn't your mother a beauty? And my, what a smile she had. That stands out the most in my memory."

Rei gave a small smile. "She was very beautiful." Rei plucked at her sleeve, playing with it in absentminded wondering. "Mina, do you remember anything about my father?"

Minako shook her head. "No. You never once mentioned who your father was, which drove all of the mothers crazy, especially mine. I went to your home many times, too, and I never once came across a painting of him or anything of the like. But I know that you had one, and I know that he was still alive. You never gave any inclination of knowing him, as if he was dead or something, but Queen Ardere never spoke that way. She would only say that he was gone, but none of us knew where."

"Oh," Rei said sadly. "Do the colors green and white mean anything to you? I know they're not about any of the girls."

"Sorry Rei, but I no," Minako replied. She then turned thoughtful. "Although, your mother had a green gemstone on her formal gown, which was strange considering it was pretty much understood that the royal families avoided displaying the colors of another family on their formal attire unless it was apparent on one of our fukus. Perhaps that's why you remember the green?"

Rei looked at Minako sharply. "Green? Why would she be wearing something green?"

Minako shrugged. "It wasn't anything large, a small stone, really. But it stood out against all of the red. When asked, Ardere claimed that she was merely very attracted to emeralds, although that was silly because it wasn't an emerald. It wasn't quite shiny enough."

Rei nodded thoughtfully, wondering if this was the connection to the green of her memories. In her vision, Ardere was wearing a red evening robe, so her formal attire had not been present for Rei to remember. But their formal attire had been such a large part of their past, considering all of the events they attended independent from being senshi, that perhaps the green gemstone was something that Rei had seen so often that it stuck of in her memory. It seemed plausible enough. But still, why couldn't she remember seeing her father?

"Minako, in my vision, my mother was getting me ready to see my father, yet the memories ends there," Rei said. "I've been trying to push my memory further, to get to the point where met him, but I can't."

"That's strange, then. Maybe your father was some really lowly commoner, like a beggar, and the news of it shocked you so much that you blocked the memory completely?" Minako offered.

Rei shook her head. "No, that's not right. I can feel that that's not right."

"You know, you did disappear from time to time," Minako said as the memory dawned on her.

"Disappear, what do you mean?" Rei asked, turning sharply to look at the Venus senshi.

Minako furrowed her brow, digging deeper into her memory. "I mean, you'd just leave, and for a few weeks at a time, too. Queen Ardere would tell us many things, like you were away on perfecting your meditation or out on diplomatic business, but when you'd come back, you seemed to not know where you went. It was like you simply vanished. But Queen Ardere never seemed concerned about it."

"That's really strange," Rei said, alert.

"Especially since a secret between the senshi was pretty much forbidden during those times. I can remember several times toying with the idea of kicking you out." At Rei's shocked expression, Minako offered her a sheepish smile. "I had to do what was best for the Princess. As much as I didn't want to believe it, we worried you might not be dependable."

Rei nodded. "I understand, Mina. I wouldn't have trusted me, either." She chewed her lip for a moment. "I wonder where I went."

Minako shrugged. "I don't know. You never told us." She looked at Rei. "Was that all that was bothering you?"

Rei sighed and nodded. "Mostly, yes. I just wish I could figure out for sure what those colors mean."

Minako gave Rei a side huge. "I'm sure you will. Just give it time Rei." She glanced at the clock. "I should get going. And Rei-chan, remember: you can always call me if you need me."

Rei nodded and smiled. "Thank you Mina-chan." She saw Minako to the steps and picked her broom back up to continue her chores.

* * *

"I'm going into Tokyo," Diamond announced.

The sound of silverware clattering and some slight choking from Rubeus followed instantly. Emerald was the first to regain her voice.

"But—but Prince Diamond, you can't. What happens if you run into one of the sisters again, or the even senshi? You're not strong enough to use the Dark Crystal. Hell, Diamond, we hardly have any powers at all! It's not safe."

"I will be going," Diamond replied. The sureness in his voice was intimidating.

"Brother, are you sure you want to risk it? What can there possibly be in Tokyo that we cannot find nearby?" Sapphire asked.

Diamond ignored him and left the dining room.

"Should we stop him?" Emerald asked.

"Let him be a fool. It will be good for his shit attitude," Rubeus said.

Sapphire sighed. "We'll give him a few hours of alone time."

"What if he finds Sailor Moon?" Emerald grumbled.

"Then he'll be on his own," Sapphire said. He picked up his fork and resumed eating.

* * *

-End of chapter!!

Sorry it took forever. I've been having writers block later, which I in turn turned into art. But now I have auditions for school coming up and I have a new job and a new show starting, so my time may be limited. I promise to keep working on this, though! Thank you all for reading and reviewing!

-Serenity


	4. The Sight of You

Chapter 4: The Sight of You

Thank you all for reviewing!

I opened my email today to get quite a lengthy review, so I will take a moment to answer some of your questions, Usako!

The story is set after the fifth season. Chibi-Usa is back in the future because there is no danger, hence no need for her to stick around. Emerald holds a grudge against Sailor Moon eternally, so naturally she'd be upset if she thought that Diamond would run into her. The Wiseman is dead. The reason the Clan has no real powers if because the person who revived them didn't have enough of their own to revive the Clan to their original full potential. And all other questions will be answered very soon in the future!

Enjoy everyone! And thank you all for still being here with me through this so-far random story!

* * *

Diamond growled as he stared at the street signs. This was ridiculous! He was a prince, and as such, people should be falling all over themselves to help him find his way. He knew that if he had his powers up to standard, he'd be able to easily manipulate someone into doing his bidding. But unfortunate, his third eye could not be easily summoned. He was thankful enough, however, that he still had enough power to hide his mark. He didn't really want to deal with the questioning stares.

"Now, which way is north?" Diamond muttered. He removed his sunglasses and glanced around. The day was nice enough that he only needed a light blazer to wear over his pale blue t-shirt. He had tied his hair back so that if he did by chance run into any of the sisters, he would not be as easily recognizable as Emerald had been. Diamond scoffed. Emerald had been foolish to wander about without doing much more to disguise herself then hide her mark. She should have known that a cloaking aura wouldn't work anymore. "Foolish woman."

Diamond turned to his right and began walking, hoping to stumble upon his destination by chance.

An hour later, Diamond found that he was more hopelessly lost then before. And angry; he was definitely more angry. He turned to the wall and slammed his fist into it, hard.

"Shit!" Diamond cursed as he pulled his hand back, nursing the smarted skin. He hissed through his teeth as he felt the pain blossom along his knuckles, small pools of blood beginning to surface.

"A wise young man hardly ever makes wise decisions," A shaky voice said.

Diamond looked up and around. Where had the voice come from? He backed up and noticed that he had punched a wall next to a small booth. A little old lady sat inside, surrounded by little charms, knickknacks, and candles. Diamond raised his eyebrow at her.

"Pardon me?" He asked.

"Come closer, young man," The woman requested, reaching out a small, wrinkly hand.

Diamond made a face of disgust and turned to leave.

"I know where she is," the woman called out.

This halted Diamond mid-step. Without turning, he asked, "What are you talking about?"

"You seek a lost love. I have seen her," the old woman said.

Diamond turned around and approached the booth. With hard eyes, he stared down the old woman. He could not sense anything unusual about her; she had the aura of any normal mortal being. Perhaps his ability to sense those of other worlds had waned? Diamond wished he had his third eye so that he may see into the woman's soul.

"What do you mean, you have seen her?" Diamond asked lowly. His gaze was still hard.

"Your lover was lost to you long ago but now she has returned to walk this Earth," the old lady said.

Diamond's eyes widened and he leaned closer. "You had best be telling the truth, old woman."

The old woman did not seem fazed by his hostility. "She is not as you knew her, but the one you loved is still inside. Seek her and you will find many complications. Do not, and you will die alone."

Diamond flinched back. "She is altered?"

"She is as she has always been."

Diamond scoffed and rolled his eyes. "You are crazy old woman." He turned to leave once more.

"Have faith and you shall find her," the old woman called. Diamond did not turn this time, but he could not keep the words from sinking into his brain. Of course he had faith he'd find her! She was his lover, and they were destined to be together forever.

Rei dipped her head back and sighed as she felt the warm sun on her face. The smell of autumn was strong in the air, but Rei was pleased that the warmth from the summer was still a resilient resident. She loved that she was able to spend as much time as she could outside during the most beautiful times of the year.

"Rei, come here please!" Grandpa called.

Rei immediately halted her chores and went to where her Grandfather was standing.

"Hai?" she asked.

"I need you to run down to the store and grab me a few things for dinner." He chuckled nervously. "I sort of gave some of the food to some lovely young ladies who were hungry."

Rei resisted the urge to scold the old man. She knew that there was no use in berating him for his poor behavior: the old man was stuck in his ways.

"Alright, Grandpa," Rei replied. Rei got out of her miko clothes and instead dressed in a red t-shirt and some khaki's.

"Rei, where are you going?" Yuuichirou asked as Rei passed by.

"I'm off to the grocery store to get ingredients for dinner. Any special requests?" Rei asked.

"Want me to come with you? I finished my chores for the day," Yuuichirou offered.

Rei shook her head. "I'll be fine, but thanks! Just go watch over Grandpa. Apparently some young things have especially caught his eye."

Yuuichirou chuckled and nodded.

Rei made her way down the steps and quickly to the grocery store a few blocks away. She spent the walk trying to think of what would be the best for dinner, wondering if she should make something low in cholesterol to help with Grandpa's heart, or something spicy to please Yuuichirou.

Yuuichirou. Rei found herself smiling. She had grown so fond of the young man over the years. He was always there to help out Grandpa, and he proved on more then one occasion that he would die for Rei. She was so touched by his display of emotion, yet she found that she could not push herself past a deep fondness for him. She had tried to picture a future for them on many occasions, tried to see them running the temple together one day, yet every time she had, somewhere deep down she felt like it was wrong. Unfortunately, that had worried Rei enough to push poor Yuuichirou away.

Rei finally decided on making soba and made her way over to contemplate toppings choices. As she reached out for one, she suddenly felt funny, sort of light headed.

Diamond sighed and, defeated, made his way down yet another random road. He quickly realized that he had stumbled upon a shopping district, judging by the sudden boom of people. He briefly considered asking someone for directions, but as usual, his pride was stifling him. He wondered why his brother hadn't come looking for him yet. Surely he had been gone a concerning about of time. What was wrong with youth these days?

As Diamond passed a store, he halted, a feeling of dizziness washing over him. He caused the man behind him to run into him, which angered the man. Diamond just brushed him off, however, and focused on the strange feeling.

"Miss, are you alright?" A nearby woman asked, having noticed Rei's slight stumble and hesitation.

Rei nodded cautiously. "I believe so, thank you," Rei replied as her body right itself. The strange feeling was gone, almost as if it had never happened. She made her selection and left the store, satisfied. She forgot about the strange feeling the instant she left the store. Checking her watch, she realized that Grandpa and Yuuichirou would be getting hungry soon and made haste on her way home.

Diamond suddenly felt right again. With a shrug, he continued on his hopeless journey.

Rei's dinner was met with much praise and appreciation. Yuuichirou gobbled up as much as he could while Rei laughed at his actions, Grandpa just sighing at the young man's actions ("You'd think he had never eaten before," Grandpa mumbled). When they were finished eating, Rei cleaned up and went to do her homework. It was Friday, so Rei wasn't too concerned with getting her homework done. She worked on some math before settling into bed to read. She didn't even realize when she had fallen asleep. But she did know when she started to dream.

_Rei stood behind a pillar, hoping that none of the mothers would notice her. She was eight this time, and in her nightgown. The room was dark, save the candelabra in the center of the room. Four women stood around it, talking quietly. _

_"Really now, Ardere, you must tell us," a beautiful blonde woman begged. Her golden hair fell to her knees and had a jeweled headband set in it for fashion purposes. She was dressed in a sleek yellow gown that accentuated her luscious curves, as was typical of her. _

_"Cytheria, I said no," Ardere snapped. _

_"Ardere, dear, please be reasonable. You can trust us, you know. We're your friends," a lovely woman with light blue hair said softly. Her hair fell to her shoulder, although at the moment it was pulled back in a messy bun. She was dressed more conservatively in a blue gown hidden underneath a sheer blue robe. Rei noticed that only Cytheria was still in her formal wear. _

_"I know you are my friends, Concordia. And I trust you with my life! I have even trusted you enough to help raise my daughter. But I cannot tell you," Ardere insisted. _

_The final woman, a tall, slightly muscled woman with wavy copper hair in a loose green gown with a housecoat over it was the last to plead their case. She placed her arm on Ardere's and looked her in the eyes, blue boring into brown. "Ardere, you cannot take this sort of information to the grave. We have noticed strange things with Rei, and we know it's connected to her mysterious father. Just save us all some worrying and tell us."_

_Ardere shook her head. She looked so tired and harried, her raven hair having fallen from her usually clean braid. She crossed to take a seat on a loveseat near the candelabra. "Rosalind, Concordia, Cytheria, you must understand that I cannot tell you. It is for Rei's safety that I must keep this secret."_

_"Who can protect her any better then us? Then my sister?" Cytheria asked. _

_"Not even Queen Serenity to protect her," Ardere countered sharply. _

_Concordia moved to sit by her friend. "What have you done, dear friend?" she asked softly. _

_Ardere sighed and looked away. Rei could see tears glistening in her eyes. _'Why are they asking my mommy so many questions? Why does it matter to them who my father is? Can't they see they are hurting my mommy?' _She longed to go to her mother's side and wipe away her tears. She couldn't believe her mother's best friends were being so cruel! _

_"Rei is not a mistake," Ardere insisted softly. _

_Rosalind came to sit at Ardere's feet, placing her hands on Ardere's. "Never! Rei is a blessing to us all! She was the first born senshi protector to Princess Serenity, a young goddess blessed by our Queen. But Ardere, she disappears for weeks at a time! The others worry about her so much." _

_Rei gasped. '_Disappeared? That's impossible! I'm always right in the castle if I'm not with the girls. What are they talking about?'

_"They have no cause to worry about her. She is perfectly fine," Ardere said. _

_"But where does she go?" Concordia pressed. _

_"She is fine, don't worry about her!" Ardere said. She stood up and attempted to move away. Rosalind was stronger, though, and managed to jump up quickly and push Ardere back down. _

_"You cannot keep fighting this, Ardere! Just tell us where she goes!" Rosalind commanded. _

_"No!" Ardere replied fiercely. _

_"Why not? Can you not trust us?" Concordia asked. _

_"You would not like who she was if you knew!" Ardere screamed finally. She stood and ran for the door, Rosalind and Concordia too stunned to restrain her. _

_Rei was stunned. What did her mother mean? What could the mothers possibly not like about her? They loved her so!_

_"Ardere, I order you to halt!" Cytheria commanded, her usually soft and beautiful voice hard and demanding. _

_Ardere halted in her steps and sighed. "Damn you, Cytheria," Rei just barely heard her mother mutter. Ardere made her way back to standing in the candlelight. "Yes, Moon Princess?" _

_Cytheria glared, her blue green eyes unforgiving. "Do not mock me at this time, Ardere. You are on dangerous grounds. You will tell me who her father is and where the she goes." _

_"Or what, Cytheria? Are you going to run off and tell big sis that I'm being unfair?" Ardere challenged. Rei gasped quietly. Her mother was being far too bold!_

_Rosalind and Concordia rose, Rei noticing that they seemed tense, almost as if they were ready to pounce at any moment to break up a physical fight. _

_"I will not drag my sister into this. But I expect you to reply to your superior when commanded. Now tell me, where does she go?" Cytheria repeated. _

_"I do not have to deal with this in my own home. As Queen of Mars and mistress of this castle I am enforcing my own power and demand that you leave my home this instant," Ardere said. _

_Cytheria glared but nevertheless she backed away. "You will tell me one day, Ardere. We have the right to know."_

_Ardere's face softened before she replied. "As I said before, it is for Rei's safety I keep this secret. Believe me when I tell you that you would not like the truth. Not even I do." _

_Without another word, Cytheria, Rosalind, and Concordia grasped hands. They glowed their respective colors before vanishing. Quickly and quietly, Rei sprinted back to her bedroom, knowing her mother would come check on her any moment now. A mere two minutes after Rei plunged herself into her bed, Ardere opened the door. _

"_Rei, sweetheart, are you awake?" Ardere called softly into the dark room. _

_Rei expertly feigned sleepiness. "M—momma?"_

_Ardere flicked her wrist and a small flame appeared in her hand. She used it to light her way as she went to her daughter's bedside, where she elegantly perched. "My love, you are not very silent when you run." _

_Rei blushed and tried to hide under her sheets. Ardere was quicker and prevented her child from her easy hiding spot. Rei was surprised to find her mother's expression was soft. Gently, Ardere smoothed the downy comforter back over her daughter._

"_How much did you hear?"_

"_Enough to know they're all mean," Rei mumbled. _

_Ardere sighed. "They love us both very much, you know. I would be frightened to see where I would be today if not for them."_

_Rei sat up in her bed. "What were they talking about, Momma? Do I really disappear?"_

_Ardere gasped. "What are you doing here?"_

Diamond finally stood outside his destination, satisfied yet annoyed. It had taken him too long to get here! He made a mental note to track down the woman who had steered him the wrong way and make her pay. Still, Diamond heaved a sigh of relief. The moon was high, surely it was past midnight, and the air was crisp with a certain bite. He was pleased with these conditions, hoping that that would deter anyone from coming by to interrupt his purpose.

Just as Diamond approached the Hikawa Shrine, he felt his body go numb once more.

"It—it couldn't be," Diamond stuttered.

Violet eyes opened, slowly taking in their strange surroundings. With a sureness that would defy many, she rose and made to stand. She was pleased to find that her balance was in tact. She turned to the side and was pleased to find a mirror. With unhindered appreciation, she ogled her reflection. She did not remember owning such a hideous nightgown such as the one she had on now, yet she could not deny that its frumpiness gave her natural beauty more sexual appeal. A sensual smirk played on her luscious lips as she ran a hand through her long violet-black hair, enjoying the silky tresses as they passed through her fingers. She tossed her head and felt a trill go through her as something caught her eye. Oh yes, she remembered. How could she have possibly forgotten the onyx beauty that was the upside-down crescent mark on her forehead?

"Amethyst?" Diamond gasped.

* * *

-End of chapter!

Because I'm CRUEL! And I want you to review. Teehee. So please review if you'd like this lovely cliffhanger to be solved!

-Serenity


	5. Reunion

Chapter 5: Reunion

"Amethyst?" Diamond gasped. He was standing outside the window of the bedroom he knew belonged to Rei Hino, the Hikawa Shrine priestess. And yet the woman who was so obviously enjoying the sight of her own reflection was _not_ Hino-san.

"Diamond!" Amethyst cried happily. She bounded across the room and swiftly jumped out of the window, as if the act were something she did every day. She excitedly threw her arms around Diamond's neck. "Oh Diamond, my dearest love! I'm so glad you are here!" She pulled away from him and looked around. "Where is 'here'?"

Diamond blinked; too stunned to do anything more then pull Amethyst close once more. He buried a hand in her thick tresses, cradling her head against his chest. "Amethyst, tell me I'm not dreaming."

She giggled and pulled away. "Why would you be dreaming, my love?"

"You—you've been gone. Gone longer then you ever have been before," Diamond explained. He placed his hands on her shoulders, staring her hard in the eyes. "Where have you been?"

Amethyst cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean? Diamond, where are we? And why in the world am I wearing this hideous thing?"

"Amethyst, we're in the 20th Century. This is the Hikawa Shrine, located just outside of Tokyo, Japan. Earth," Diamond told her.

Amethyst laughed. "Don't be so silly, Diamond! Now truly, where are we?"

"I'm quite serious, my love. We are not as we once were," Diamond explained.

"Well of course not! You have your hair tied back in a ridiculous fashion!" Amethyst gently yanked Diamond's hair free and used the hair tie to secure her own in a loose ponytail.

Diamond gently gathered Amethyst against him once more. "Amethyst, you must believe me."

Amethyst looked around, finally taking in her surroundings to the full effect. In the light of the moon, she could see that nothing was at all how she remembered things. Even in the darkness, the vibrant colors were apparent all around her. Carefully, she crouched down and touched the ground. It was cold, but not as cold as Nemesis was. Was it possible that they were truly in the future?

"Diamond, how did we get here?" Amethyst asked.

Diamond's heart ached at how sweetly childish she sounded in her bewilderment. He helped her rise. "What do you remember?"

Amethyst shook her head. "Nothing. One moment I was lying next to you in bed and the next I awoke here." She paused. "Although I get the feeling that I was trapped somehow, in someplace dark and lonely." Her violet eyes turned fearful and she clung to her lover. "Oh Diamond, I never want to go there again!"

"Shhh, it's alright my love. You never will have to." Diamond looked around and spotted a bench beneath a tree not too far from the temple. He led Amethyst there and they sat down, Amethyst curled onto his lap.

"Diamond, why are we here? I want to go home," Amethyst asked quietly.

"The day after my proposal, you vanished as you often did. And then you did not return for three months. I searched endlessly for you until," Diamond sighed, "until the freeze happened."

"Freeze?" Amethyst repeated.

"I still do not know what happened. I just know that when we awoke, it was the 30th century, and you were still gone," Diamond explained. He briefly launched into a description into his trials with Neo Queen Serenity (leaving out his obsession) and the battle with the senshi in this century (leaving out his obsession with Sailor Moon again). "The Sisters were purified by Sailor Moon and remain living in this century. Emerald was killed by the senshi in the 30th century, and my brother and I were killed in this century by the Wiseman. The Wiseman was destroyed by the senshi."

"You died!" Amethyst gasped. She hugged him close and fought back her tears. "Everyone died? And the girls, how could they betray us so! We must get revenge on those sailor senshi, especially the one named Sailor Moon!"

Diamond stroked her hair, soothing her. "I do not wish for revenge on the senshi. They showed us the good in this century, and those of the future."

"But—but, they killed Eme!" Amethyst cried out.

"And she is now alive and well, as am I." Diamond snorted. "Even Rubeus is alive."

"How?" Amethyst asked.

Diamond shook his head. "That I do not know. We just woke up in an apartment with an unsigned note letting us know that we had been granted a second chance. We realized that we had been returned to the 20th century and have since attempted to make the best out of it. We own a jewelry shop in a nearby district and are doing quite well by this centuries standards."

"Diamond, why was I not with you after the freeze? Where have I been? And why am I here now?" Amethyst asked.

Diamond held her close. "I do not know, and I no longer care. I just know that you're here with me now, and that is all that matters." Diamond pulled back just enough so that he could finally kiss the lips that he had dreamt of for centuries now. He reveled in the kiss, making it more heated then toning it down in various rhythms. When he felt the need to finally breathe, he pulled away.

"Diamond, where is my father? And little Peridot and Topaz?" Amethyst asked.

Diamond could only look away sadly. "They were not with us when the freeze was lifted."

Amethyst gasped. "Wh—what?" Tears slipped from her violet eyes. "But my father! Diamond, where is my little sister?"

"I'm sorry, my love, but we are still unsure of their whereabouts. We had assumed that all of Nemesis had been revived along with us, and yet when we emerged, we found our planet to be even more of a wasteland then before. Every inhabitant had vanished."

"I want to go to Nemesis now! Diamond, let's go home! I want to find my father! And my sweet little Peri; oh, I know she must be terrified without me there. Diamond, I even want to see Topaz!" Amethyst insisted.

"I am not as I once was, Amethyst. None of us are. Nemesis is lost to us all," Diamond added the last part in a whisper.

Amethyst shook her head in disbelief. "No! This cannot be!" She stood up and attempted with all of her might to feel her powers. And yet, she found that she did not. Something deep within her stirred, this much was true, but all that surfaced was a small spark.

"Darling, you can still spark!" Diamond gasped, rising to her side.

She looked at him blankly. "This is an accomplishment? Diamond, even a baby can spark!"

Diamond sighed and held out his hand. Amethyst looked at his hand then back at him, waiting. When a minute passed, it dawned on her. "You cannot? Diamond, what has become of you?"

"When we awoke, we were able to do little with our powers. We can hide our marks and manipulate our namesake stones, but that seems to be the limit," Diamond explained.

Amethyst looked helplessly at her lover. "What will become of us in this world?"

"We will live our lives out properly," Diamond responded.

Amethyst cracked a sarcastic smile. "You surely are not my Prince Diamond, my future husband! He would never insist such ridiculous things. The man I fell in love with wanted to take the Earth for himself and rule it as a king, with a proper queen at his side."

Diamond smiled affectionately at dark lover. "Things have changed, sweet." He stopped to scoop up a coal that had fallen away from the fire. He closed his hand around it and when he opened it, Amethyst shrieked happily at the beautiful diamond ring that rested in it.

"Oh Diamond, it's beautiful! However did you create the band?" Amethyst asked, inspecting her new ring in the moonlight.

"I've learned a few new tricks," Diamond replied. He carefully plucked the ring from her hands and grabbed her left hand. "Amethyst, I cannot promise you the life I once did. But I can promise you a happy one by my side. We may not be king and queen of the world one day, but you can still be the queen of my world. Will you marry me in this lifetime, as I am?"

Amethyst frowned. "Things can never be the same as they were before?"

Diamond's face fell but he responded nevertheless. "As far as I have come to understand it, no. I cannot guarantee that we will ever be able to return to Nemesis or see our other loved ones again. But my brother is with us, as is Emerald and Rubeus. We can be part of the family we once were."

Amethyst looked around. She never thought that she'd miss the desolate planet that was Nemesis. It was her home, the place where her loved ones lived. Yet as she turned back to face Diamond, she felt like she was at home in her heart. She smiled and kissed her love. "Of course I will marry you."

Diamond smiled and after slipping the ring on her finger, twirled her around happily. It was as they were kissing and laughing that the light turned on.

"What is going on out here!" Yuuichirou demanded. He blushed when he saw the intimately embracing couple. "You two must leave these sacred grounds if you wish to continue your—erm—your actions!"

Yuuichirou gasped as the woman turned around.

"Rei! Rei-san, what—what are you doing with this man!" Yuuichirou asked. He felt his heart break. How could his beautiful and loyal Rei be carrying on like this with another man? Sure, she had never been outright with her confession to him, but he thought that she cared for him!

"Rei? Who is Rei?" Amethyst asked.

"You are!" Yuuichirou replied.

Amethyst blinked at him then looked up at Diamond before looking back at the confused young man. "I am sorry, sir, but I am not this 'Rei' person you speak of. My name is Amethyst."

Yuuichirou approached the couple then colored. Perhaps it was the darkness that had confused him? "Oh! I'm so sorry! Please forgive me. It's just that I mistook you for our shrine maiden." Yuuichirou bowed fiercely to the couple and babbled like an idiot.

"It's quite alright," Diamond assured him.

When Yuuichirou stood, he observed the woman in what little light he could. He supposed that this Amethyst and Rei did look alike in a way. They had the same lovely eyes, yet this woman's mouth was definitely fuller. And her hair was set in a way that Rei would never wear it, the ponytail far too loose then what Rei would not deem at all worthwhile. He felt very embarrassed for having assumed that Rei would toy with his heart so.

"I fear that I still must ask you to leave. Hino-san is quite adamant that no one should wander the grounds in the evening," Yuuichirou said.

Diamond nodded in understanding and wrapped an arm around Amethyst to usher her away. As they walked past Rei's room, Diamond paused.

"Did you happen to see someone else in that room?" Diamond asked.

Amethyst shook her head. "I did not see anyone else." Her eyes narrowed. "Why?"

Diamond contemplated telling her that he knew someone else usually resided in the bedroom he had found her in, but knew that that would only fuel her jealousies. He assured himself that Hino-san was just somewhere else and would not notice any disturbance. But still, why was Amethyst here? When he noticed her annoyed look, Diamond shook his head.

"Nothing dear, I'm just curious. You must admit that this is all rather random."

Amethyst nodded her head then continued to walk. "I would very much like to return to your home now. Perhaps you have something more suitable for me to wear?" She plucked the hem of her hideous outfit and wrinkled her nose at it.

Diamond chuckled. Amethyst was truly a Nemesis girl, always worrying about her clothing. "I'm sure Emerald would be more then happy to lend you something for the duration of the night."

Amethyst turned around and smirked, a sensual light lighting her eyes. "Perhaps I should have some reason to not burden my dear old friend with such a task so late at night. Maybe I shall just have to sleep in something a bit more…natural?"

Diamond did not need a second suggestion. He quickly whisked his lover back to his home by way of a cab, where he made sure to show her more then once how much he had missed her.

"Amethyst!" Emerald gasped, dropping the tray in her hands with a loud clang. She had been coming to deliver Diamond some breakfast in order to comfort him after what she was sure had been a bad day. She did not count on seeing the violet-haired beauty lying across the naked chest of the Nemesis Prince.

Diamond and Amethyst both stirred at the clang.

"Sapphire, come quick!" Emerald called out.

Her loud voice was enough to fully pull the two lovers from their sleep.

"Emerald, would you please cease with the noise?" Diamond ordered.

"Emerald?" Amethyst repeated sleepily. She then opened her eyes fully and grinned, rolling over so that she could see the green-haired woman at the door. "Emerald, my dearest friend!"

"Amethyst, it really is you!" Sapphire gasped when he came upon the scene. He then colored. "Please, Lady Amethyst, do cover yourself."

Amethyst giggled and pulled the sheet up to cover her breasts. Still, she held her arms out for Emerald. "Emerald, I have missed you so!"

With some hesitance, Emerald entered the room and embraced the girl. Sapphire was right behind her, eyeing his brother suspiciously. How could this be?

"Amethyst, I never dreamed we see you again!" Emerald said, hugging the girl close.

Diamond sat up and tousled his hair. "Yes, well, I knew I would find her. I came upon her late last night outside of the Hikawa Shrine." He smirked smugly. "I told you that I would find her."

Sapphire came around to his brother's side of the bed and knelt so that he was closer. "Brother, do you not find it odd that she has appeared? She was gone for centuries. What are the chances that she would reappear in the same century as we?" Sapphire asked in a hushed voice.

Diamond clapped his brother on the shoulder. "What difference does that make except that she is here now? Go and greet your sister!"

Almost simultaneously, Emerald noticed the one thing that Amethyst had on: a diamond ring.

"Where did this come from?" Emerald asked.

Amethyst turned to grin at her lover. "Diamond and I were engaged shortly before I—erm—disappeared. We decided that there was no sense in delaying what we knew would come about again."

Emerald stepped back, hurt. "Prince Diamond, you never told me."

Diamond rolled his eyes, unmoved by her display of annoying emotions. "I am no longer your prince."

"Isn't it wonderful, Eme?" Amethyst asked brightly, too distracted by her ring to even notice Emerald's demeanor.

"Y—yes, yes it is," Emerald replied woodenly. "I should pick up this mess." She left the bedroom silently.

"Where is Rubeus?" Amethyst asked.

"He left this morning to open the shop. I was just on my way to join him," Sapphire replied. He was still suspicious of the situation; something felt strange to him.

"I will not be coming in for my shift today. I must buy my bride-to-be a wardrobe," Diamond announced, causing an excited shriek from Amethyst.

"Oh, do you mean it, darling? I cannot wait!" Amethyst exclaimed happily.

"Okay," Sapphire replied silently. As he went to leave the bedroom, he nearly bumped into Emerald. He took the wet rag from her hands. "Go to your room, Emerald. I have this taken care of."

Emerald said nothing as she relinquished the rag and walked into her bedroom. There, she cried.

Sapphire cleaned up the mess then left for the shop without another word to Diamond. He could not stop the strange feeling plaguing him. While there was no doubt in his mind that it was truly Amethyst that was in Diamond's bed, something felt wrong about her presence. Perhaps it was the lack of Dark Energy? Did he feel strange to her as well? No, Sapphire decided. That was not what was wrong, although he was sure that that was part of it; a small part, to be sure, but not the entirety. Something was very wrong with her, and Sapphire decided that he would find out what.

Amethyst was thrilled and intrigued by the advances in fashion present all around her. She found underwear strange but appealing, and thought that pants were simply too blasphemous to even consider. Skirt of all lengths appealed to her immediately, and she devoured every dress she could get her hands on. Accessories, too, called to her, intriguing her to buy new advances, like purses, and old friends, like shoes. By midday, Diamond had spent more money then he had anticipated, but he did not care. He was thrilled to see his fiancée so happy and did not care what the cost was (although he was sure Sapphire, who took care of the finances, would give him quite the reaming when he found out). After taking their new purchases home and allowing for Amethyst to change out of Emerald's clothes and into her own, Diamond took her out to lunch.

"What a peculiar notion," Amethyst remarked as they approached the restaurant. The whole idea of shopping had been fun and new to her; she was so used to having someone bring things that they thought she'd like to her, but she did not object this new advancement. Having to leave the home to eat, however, seemed very strange to her.

"It is quite common for the humans," Diamond assured her as he helped her into her chair.

"But to have food cooked by someone you do not know? Isn't that dangerous?" Amethyst asked.

Diamond chuckled at her as he handed her a menu. "There is no danger of anything at fine places such as these." He gave her a dazzling smile, the one he reserved only for her viewing. "I would never take my bride anywhere dangerous."

Amethyst seemed calmed by this and opened her menu. "Oh my!" she gasped as she read down the list.

Diamond smiled and helped her make a food selection.

"I'm worried about Rei-chan," Usagi confided in Luna. "I haven't seen her all day."

"Maybe she's doing her chores, like you should be," Luna replied.

Usagi ignored the jab. "When I called the shrine earlier, Yuuichirou-san told me that he hadn't seen her all day. _He _had to make breakfast."

"Have you asked the other girls?" Luna asked.

Usagi nodded. "I asked all of them if they have seen her, and yet no one has."

"We should go check it out," Luna suggested.

"Good! I'll call the girls!" Usagi said. She pulled out her communicator and called up Ami, Makoto, and Minako.

"What's up, Usagi-chan? Find Rei-chan yet?" Minako asked.

Usagi shook her head. "No. I think there is something fishy going on here. Let's all meet at the shrine, okay?"

"Hai!" they all replied before their screens went black.

Usagi and Ami were the first to arrive, Makoto then Minako arriving a few minutes later. They stood at the bottom of the shrine steps, waiting to go up.

"Something feels strange," Ami said.

The others nodded.

"It's like a strange presence," Minako added.

"It's negative, but not at the same time. Strange," Makoto said, her brow furrowing.

"Let's go look for Rei. I'm sure she can figure it out," Usagi said.

The girls walked up the steps and looked around the shrine for sight of their friend. However, she was nowhere to be seen. She wasn't in her room, she wasn't in her fire reading room, nor was she around the grounds. They did, however, spot Yuuichirou.

"Yuuichirou-san! Hey, have you seen Rei-chan yet?" Usagi asked.

He shook his head. "As I told you before, I have not seen her since last night when she went to bed. I thought I saw her last night with a man, but I was mistaken."

This caught all of their interest.

"A man? Can you describe them?" Makoto asked.

"Well, the girl looked exactly like Rei-san, but she had her hair back in a low ponytail. And the man had really light hair, almost like it was white, that went to his shoulders," Yuuichirou described.

"White hair?" Usagi gasped.

Everyone immediately pictured the same man: Prince Diamond.

"Did you hear either of their names?" Minako asked.

"The woman said her name was Amethyst," Yuuichirou supplied.

The girls gasped.

"Thank you Yuuichirou-san. Please let us know if you hear from Rei-san," Usagi said.

The girls went to Rei's room where they knew they could speak in private.

"There is no way that is a coincidence. A man with white hair to his shoulders and a woman named Amethyst?" Makoto said.

"But I thought Prince Diamond was dead. Is it possible they were revived?" Minako asked, looking at Ami.

"We've seen stranger things," she reminded them. The girls all nodded, each thinking of a separate instance.

"But what would Prince Diamond and this Amethyst woman be doing here?" Makoto asked rather rhetorically.

"I wonder where Rei went," Usagi whispered. She had been looking around Rei's room for any clues while the others talked. Then, she noticed. "Her bed wasn't made."

"What did you say, Usagi-chan?" Ami asked.

"Rei's bed isn't made. That's not like her," Usagi said.

All of the girls turned around and looked at the unmade bed. Ami pulled out her computer and began examining the bedroom.

"Do you think Prince Diamond and Amethyst did something to her?" Usagi asked the others.

"Possibly," Ami said.

Everyone turned to her.

"There seems to be a lingering sense of Nemesis power in here, but it is very weak. It starts there, at her mirror, and goes out the window," Ami said.

"Let's follow it," Minako suggested.

They all carefully climbed out Rei's window and followed Ami as she followed the trace on her computer.

"Looks like they stopped here for quite some time," Ami explained as they stood at one particularly hot spot.

"Are you getting a read on Rei's energy at all?" Makoto asked.

Ami closely examined the graphs and charts on her computer. It was then that she saw the small blip. "Yes, it is. There is just a tiny trace, however."

"So Rei might be with them?" Usagi asked.

Ami's brow furrowed. "It's hard to tell. Perhaps the computer is just picking up on her energy because she lives here, or they managed to kidnap her and reduce her trace. But why would they kidnap Rei?"

"She has the most natural power. I wouldn't want to take her on in any form," Minako said.

"Let's follow this trace and see where it leads us," Ami said.

The girls followed back down the steps and to the street. Anxiously, they looked towards Ami and her computer.

"It's even fainter here. There is too much energy from other people that it is hard to pick up. However, it leads into the road and goes that way," Ami said, pointing to their right. "It appears that they got in a car and drove off."

"Was Rei still with them?" Usagi asked.

"Again, it's very faint, but her trace is intermingled with theirs."

The girls followed the trail for what felt like forever. At times, they had to stop because Ami was having trouble locating it in the denser populated areas. But soon, they arrived at a destination. It was an apartment building.

"Prince Diamond is living in an apartment?" Makoto scoffed.

"Not just him, either," Ami said. She showed them her computer. "I'm picking up traces of Emerald, and Rubeus, and even Sapphire. Strange," Ami whispered.

"Should we transform?" Makoto asked.

"No," Usagi decided. "I don't feel anything overly negative. It's similar to how the Four Sisters feel to me when we go to visit them."

"Usagi-chan is right. I feel that, too," Minako agreed.

"Still, we need to find Rei. Her trace led us here, so she must be here," Makoto said.

"Well, this is not the end. There is a stronger trace going into town again. Perhaps we should follow that?" Ami suggested.

Usagi groaned. "Can we at least take a tiny break first? We have been walking for hours."

"It's only been two, Usagi-chan," Makoto said with a roll of her eyes.

"Usagi-chan is right. Let's get something to eat in town, though. It will save us some time," Ami said.

The girls all nodded and made their way into town to the nearest restaurant.

"It's expensive looking," Usagi whined.

"I can pay," Ami said.

"That's not fair to you, Ami-chan," Makoto argued.

Ami giggled and shrugged. "It's alright. My mom gives me too much of an allowance, and you girls are my friends."

Usagi shrieked in joy and hugged Ami.

"Thank you Ami-chan! You're the best!" Usagi squealed happily.

"Thank you so much, Ami-chan!" Minako squealed in kind, also hugging Ami.

Ami and Makoto both laughed at this and made their way into the restaurant.

"Oh my gosh!" Minako asked.

"It's Prince Diamond!" Makoto said.

"And that's Rei!" Usagi finished

-End of chapter!

I'm sorry that I keep leaving you with cliffhangers, but the story works well with them…teehee. I have a basic outline for where the rest of this is going, so I am hoping to get it all out and done as soon as possible. Also, feel free to check out my dA account (link is in my profile) for some art of our dear Amethyst!

-Serenity


	6. The Confusion

Chapter 6: The confusion

Sorry for the delay! Honestly this has been done FAR longer than I care to admit, but I have been unhappy with it and just left it alone. But now I have a new direction for it so I'm just powering through. Thank you to anyone still reading it!

"But what…what is Rei doing here with Prince Diamond?" Minako asked.

"We must be wrong. I mean, Rei would never be anywhere with Prince Diamond," Makoto insisted.

"But she looks exactly like Rei!" Usagi urged.

"Is that the Amethyst woman Yuuichirou-san mentioned?" Minako asked, all eyes turning to Ami.

Ami took out her computer and quickly set to analyzing the couple at the table just a few away from theirs. "Prince Diamond is lacking severely on his Nemesis powers. I can only pick up a little trace of it on him. As for the woman, she's…I don't understand this. She has more powers then Prince Diamond, and it is still not nearly enough to cause us alarm, but they are definitely of the Nemesis origin. And, I don't know how to explain this, but my computer is insisting that that is Rei and yet not." When she was met with confused stares, Ami continued. "It is saying that she is both familiar and foreign. It is reading and registering Prince Diamond completely," she turned her computer to show them, "and yet when I have the focused pulled on the woman, it flares back and forth from recognizing her and then attempting to scan her completely to register her as a new profile."

"She looks like she is in pain and Prince Diamond looks so frantic," Usagi observed in surprise.

Amethyst hissed through her teeth, holding her forehead in her hand.

"Please, tell me what is wrong! What can I do to help?" Diamond pleaded. He had given her his hand to hold and she was currently squeezing all the blood from it. "Amethyst, please, what is wrong?"

"I feel so strange," Amethyst replied through clenched teeth. "It is like I'm being ripped apart."

Diamond was so confused. One moment, she had been smiling and laughing with him and then she was doubling over in pain. Where there had once been tears from laughter there were now tears from sheer pain. Diamond wondered if it was the water they had been served, or perhaps her wine. They had not been given food yet, so he knew it was not that. What was wrong with her?

"We have to get out of here," Amethyst begged. "Something is wrong here, I need to be gone," she insisted.

Diamond did not need to be told twice. He rose and helped her up in a few short seconds, immediately steering her towards the exit.

And then he saw them. It was Neo-Queen Serenity, or Usagi as he remembered her being called in this century. She was there with her other senshi, and if he had been paying closer enough attention, he would have noticed the absence of one, one who had also been missing the night before. He was too shocked as his lavender eyes met the cerulean ones of Usagi Tsukino, eyes filled with confusion and surprise, to even notice that Amethyst's hand had gone slack in his. At that moment, their gaze had been broken and Diamond had mere moments to catch the fainting Amethyst.

"Oh my!" someone nearby gasped.

"Someone call a doctor!" another person cried out.

Ami was instantly at their side.

"What happened?" she asked as she began checking for a pulse.

"She said she was feeling strange so we were about to leave," Diamond replied.

"Has she had any alcohol?"

"Only a few quick sips of wine."

"Does she have any food allergies? Is she diabetic?"

"No and no."

Ami looked up and met Diamond's eyes. "Do you know who I am?"

Prince Diamond nodded slowly. "Yes."

"Who is she?"

"Miss, please move aside, we've called for an ambulance," a waiter ordered.

"I'm a nurse," Ami lied smoothly. "Let's get this woman out of here. Can you lift her?"

Diamond immediately complied and lifted the limp woman into his arms. Usagi, Minako, and Makoto stumbled up and ran after them as they left the restaurant. They ignored the protests from the wait-staff and diners as Diamond led them down the street and back to his apartment building. He and Ami road in the elevator alone, the trio having to catch the next one because of lack of room.

"Does anyone else think this is crazy?" Minako asked as they went up.

"Just a lot bit. But we will definitely be getting answers soon," Makoto replied.

"I hope so," Usagi said quietly.

They arrived just in time to see which apartment Diamond dashed into. They entered the apartment and were shocked to find Emerald, Sapphire, and Rubeus standing there off to the side while Diamond laid the woman on the couch, Ami right next to him. Ami ordered Sapphire to grab a cold washcloth and then asked Rubeus for a flashlight. Emerald remained in the shadows, watching the scene silent and still.

"Has this ever happened before?" Ami asked.

"Not to my knowledge," Diamond replied.

"Has she eaten today?"

"A bit."

"Has she been ill?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"Does she have a family history of fainting spells?"

"Not that I know of."

"Was she exposed to a lot of sun today? Was she over-exhausted? Did she eat anything unfamiliar?"

"No, not at all, and not technically."

"Prince Diamond, please, who is she?"

The room fell silent.

Sapphire handed over the washcloth while Rubeus put the flashlight on the table. The trio of girls held their breath, waiting for the answer.

"Her name is Lady Amethyst, and she is my fiancée," Prince Diamond replied.

Usagi felt instantly awkward. Prince Diamond had been using her to _cheat_ on his fiancée? Especially one who looked like her best friend! It was beyond awkward, Usagi decided, but chose instead to keep quiet and see what other answers he would give.

"Do you know what happened to our friend, Rei? Or as you know her, Sailor Mars?" Ami asked.

Diamond looked confused. "Why would I know that?" He turned and acknowledge the trio of girls for the first time. He counted and then turned back to Ami. "She is missing?"

"Since last night. We have been informed that around the time she disappeared, you were seen very near her room with this woman. What were you doing at the shrine?" Ami asked.

"That was where I found Amethyst," Diamond replied.

"Found her?" Ami prodded, knowing that there was something else lurking there.

"Why haven't we ever heard of an Amethyst?" Usagi whispered to her friends.

"She was lost to us," Diamond explained softly. "She disappeared frequently during the time of the Silver Millennium. She did this often, but the last time, she never returned"

"You were around then?" Makoto gasped.

"Of course! How could I have ever forgotten?" Minako exclaimed. "Nemesis was not exactly on good terms with our alliance, but they were around then. We avoided contact with them, only our parents dealt with them, but I remember hearing stories about the residents. Although they were never referred to by name, I remember my mother making comment about the fact that you were all named for stones."

"You shunned us," Diamond accused.

"It was the other way around," Minako bit back. "You were all so exclusive, so secretive."

"You saw our marks and rejected us," Emerald exclaimed, glaring towards the senshi.

"A black moon is never a good sign," Minako said, returning the glare. "We never knew if you were good or bad, and you did nothing to encourage us to think you were good."

"Nor did we anything to make you think we were bad," Rubeus replied.

"Can we stop this, please?" Usagi cried out.

"Usagi-chan is right. Let's focus on what is going on right now instead of what happened in the past," Makoto added. She turned her attention to Prince Diamond. "Your Amethyst disappeared frequently?"

"Yes. Her father assured me that she was off with her mother, a woman who was kept a secret from us, although she never seemed to remember these trips. When the Silver Millennium ended and we were awakened in the future as you know it, she was nowhere to be found. We were sure we had finally lost her for good," Diamond explained, looking very sad.

"How was it that you returned to life here?" Usagi asked.

"We do not know. I can assure you that if I knew the answer, I'd tell you. I'd love to know myself," Diamond promised.

"And how did you finally relocate Amethyst?" Ami asked.

"I could feel her pull. She is my fiancée, my true love, and our hearts are connected. I'd always know her."

Makoto, Usagi, and Minako could not help but swoon a bit by his intense proclamation of love.

"And your Sailor Mars, does she disappear often?" Emerald asked.

"Never," Usagi answered.

"In this lifetime, that is," Minako corrected. "In our past lives, Rei was often missing."

"Do you think they're the same person?" Usagi asked. When everyone gave her dumbfounded looks, she looked to Ami. "Well, you said that your computer was registering her as Rei and as someone else, and they're saying that Amethyst was gone a lot and Mina said that Rei was gone a lot and they were missing Amethyst and we had Rei, and now that they're back, she is back." Usagi shrugged. "I mean, it makes sense to me."

"While that does make a lot of sense, it does not fill in all the gaps. When we first met the Black Moon Clan, we had Rei with us, and not once did she turn into Amethyst," Ami said.

Usagi deflated. "I guess that's true."

"Why don't we just ask her when she wakes up if she knows anything about Rei?" Makoto suggested.

"She doesn't," Diamond answered. "When I found her in your Rei's bedroom, she seemed to not understand where she was, and when confronted by that name, she had no response."

"What about Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?" Minako quipped. "They switched from one to the other and never knew it. Maybe the same thing happens to Rei?"

"But how?" Ami asked.

"Oh who gives a fuck? We have Amethyst back, now Diamond will stop bitching and we can live happy little powerless lives. Sorry you lost your fire senshi, that's a real shame, but it's also not our problem," Rubeus scoffed. He began pushing the trio out the door. "Thanks for stopping by, kindly never come again, now leave."

"Hey, wait a minute!" Makoto shouted, pushing back. "What if she is Rei, too? She may be his lost lover and all that, but she also may be our best friend. Don't we get a say here?"

"Feh, let them take her," Emerald grumbled.

"Emerald, Rubeus, stop this now!" Diamond commanded. "They are right. We must let them stay."

"I wish we could get her to wake up," Ami mumbled, still fixated on the girl on the couch. She took out her computer and began a body scan, turning off the identification feature to prevent her computer any confusion. Ami let out a small gasp as her readings began filling up the screen. "You guys wouldn't believe how much brain activity she has going on right now! All her other vitals are at stable, resting levels, although her heart does seem to be racing. I wonder what's going on."

"Where am I?" Rei asked. "Hello! Is there someone out there! Hello!" The black void that surrounded her swallowed her cries. "How did I get here? Is this a dream?"

"My God, I thought this would never happen," an eerily familiar voice gasped from behind.

Rei turned around and had a gasp of her own. The woman standing in front of her could pass for her twin! They stature, their build, even the slope of their noses were the same. The only thing setting them apart was the way they wore their hair and—

"A black crescent. You're from the Black Moon Clan! What are you doing here? What did you do to me?" Rei barked, going immediately into a defensive pose.

Amethyst laughed. "Wow, it really is true. We're exactly alike."

"Why do you look like me? Where are we? Answer me!" Rei demanded.

Amethyst's face expression instantly sobered. "Or is the question why do you look like me? I've spent much of my time here wondering which of us came first." She smiled sadly. "After all, whoever came first really has dibs."

"What are you talking about?" Rei asked, relaxing a bit.

Amethyst sighed. "There is so much to tell you."

"What is going on here?" Rei asked.

"Would you like to see something you've always wanted to see? In return, though, you've got to the do the same for me," Amethyst said.

"Umm, I—I suppose," Rei said, unsure.

In the black void, there was suddenly the image of a man. He was tall and handsome, with jade green hair and deep green eyes. He wore a jacket similar to what Rei remembered Sapphire wearing with black pants. And on his forehead was a black moon.

"This is Colonel Jaden of the Black Moon Clan Army," Amethyst said, pride shining in her eyes. She smiled at Rei. "And he is your father. Well, your Silver Millennium father, that is."

Rei's eyes went wide. "What? No, you're joking! This cannot possibly be true! My father was not Black Moon."

"Then what was he, Rei? You don't remember him. As far as you know, you've never even met him," Amethyst said.

Rei faltered. "I—I—I don't know. I just can't believe that he's my father."

Amethyst approached the image, which went from massive to life-sized. "Look at him, Rei, and look at him closely. You cannot deny the similarities. Your ears are the same, your nose is the same, even your hands are similar. He is your father, Rei." She looked at Rei. "Now, you have to do the same for me. I'd like to see your Silver Millennium mother."

Rei only thought Ardere's name and her image appeared like Jaden's had.

Amethyst gasped, her eyes teary. "She's so beautiful. I always knew she would be, but I never imagined as beautiful as this." She reached out her hand to touch the image, which wavered as her hand passed through it. She closed her eyes, a tear falling down her cheek. "I will never get to do that, you know. I never could touch her, never even look at her." She looked up at Rei. "Thank you for this gift. I'll treasure it forever."

Rei was confused. "I don't understand."

"Did you know it took me years to get this story out of Father? Ever since I was eight, I knew something was up. The random blackouts, the weeks that went by while I supposedly slipped in and out of coma's, despite my perfect health? I mean, you can hardly expect a girl to ignore something like that, especially when it's happened all of her life." She then laughed a bit. "I mean, I suppose you never noticed, but that was because you got more time. I never got that much, a few days here and there, spread out throughout my years. You got to do all the fun things, like celebrate our birthday and enjoy holidays. Me, I was here, all alone." Amethyst gestured to the great blackness surrounding them. She snapped her fingers and a comfortable living space appeared, complete with a lit fire, several plush, worn pieces of furniture, and a bookcase. "I kept myself occupied, I suppose, but I was always so jealous. You were so lucky being Sailor Mars and friend of Princess Serenity. And yet, when I met Diamond that still gave me no weight in the choice. My relationship with the Nemesis prince was apparently not as important as serving the White Moon princess. I mean, I understood, I got it, but I was always so jealous."

"Will you just explain things to me!" Rei snapped, annoyed. "You're making it sound like we're the same person!"

Amethyst fixed her with an amused stare. "Finally, you got it." She stepped forward and extended her hand. "I am Lady Amethyst, daughter to Colonel Jaden of the Black Moon and Queen Ardere of Mars. And I have shared your body since the day we were born."

"What?" Rei whispered.

Amethyst dropped her hand with a shrug. "No one knows why or how. I don't think our parents explored it much, but I suppose I can't really blame them. I mean I can, what with their ridiculous embarrassment at their relationship. They were in love! But no, just because they were from separate sides of the Alliance, they couldn't be. So instead, they met in secret, conceived us, and then were forever doomed to never be complete family."

Amethyst gestured to two identical armchairs. "Shall we sit? This may take a while."

Rei occupied a red chair while Amethyst took a dark green once. Neither noticed this.

"The power of crystals is amazing," Amethyst began. "I know you've seen what the Silver and Golden can do, and you've even had a taste of what our crystal can do. And although our father was not a member of the Black Moon royal family, as a colonel, he had training and full access with to Black Moon Crystal. Because of this, he had more of it linked to his body then the average citizen, although not more then the royal family. And I do not need to tell you what the Mars Crystal is capable of or its amazing power as it is yours.

"When our parents met, they hadn't anticipated the relationship that resulted. But sparks flew and soon they were in love. Being on opposite sides of the Alliance, however, they kept this a secret. Ardere loved Queen Serenity and didn't want to hurt her with this betrayal, and Father loved the clan too much to do the same. They never dared go public, because they thought it would start a war. They tried being apart, but they couldn't once Ardere found out that she was pregnant. However, as we began to develop, Ardere found it difficult to be around Father and often forced him away. She said that it was hurting us and her and he was too scared of losing both to do anything. He left her alone for seven months of her pregnancy, and was not by her side until the day we were born.

"They thought we were going to die when we were born. According to Father, our forehead went back and forth between the Mars symbol and the Black Moon symbol, and we could not stop screaming. The midwife was terrified because she'd never heard such screaming, said it was not the cry of a newborn but that of a person in true pain. Ardere was curious and ordered Father from the room. Immediately, the Mars symbol stayed on your forehead and you stopped crying. She then gave you to the midwife to give to Father, and it was then that the Black Moon symbol appeared on my forehead and I did not cry either. When he brought me back into the room near Ardere, the screaming started up again and the symbols went back and forth. They thought that maybe this was some strange fluke at birth, something that would go away with time. But neither knew which symbol would remain, nor did they know which they preferred. Ardere knew that the Nemesis people weren't bad, so she knew that the symbol wasn't bad. And Father knew what kind of power and influence came from a Mars symbol and knew that it would help us. We were unnamed at birth.

"As the next week went by, it was more of the same. Whenever we were with both parents, we screamed in pain. Whichever parent held us, we took on that symbol. It did not take them long to realize that they had two different daughters, two souls living in one body. Ardere feared schizophrenia, but when she tested the medicine on you as a young girl, it had no effect. We were truly two souls sharing one body and they knew that there was only one way to fix it. They devised a schedule and said their goodbyes. We were named Amethyst Rei, or Rei Amethyst, depending on the parent we were with. Through small experiments, they quickly figured out the boundaries of our split body: if we were on Nemesis, even without Father, we became me. If we were anywhere else in the universe, on any other planet, we were you. However, when exposed to the Black Moon Crystal on another planet, except Mars, we became me once more. Whenever the Mars Crystal was brought to Nemesis, or visa versa, we once more faced the same pain we had as a baby. Those closest to me, like my father or Prince Diamond, were able to influence my change outside of the planet without direct influence from the crystal. People like my stepmother, however, failed to cause a change."

"What happened to you while I was me, then?" Rei asked.

"I was here, of course. As I said before, because you were Sailor Mars and the guardian to Princess Serenity, you had priority of our body. You were almost always in control. There was a time when our parents even discussed letting you have complete control, which meant keeping me trapped in here, forever." Amethyst shuddered. "I cannot even imagine a fate like that for myself. As cozy as I can make it, it will never replace being out there for real." She then smiled softly. "Anyway, I fell in love with Prince Diamond and soon it was apparent that there would be no one girl over the other anymore. Father was too loyal to the family to deny the prince his happiness, and obviously you couldn't be given up. The time we split became more even, but as Diamond and I fell more and more in love, this became a bit more complicated. After all, what would they do if I married him? They couldn't give up Sailor Mars."

Rei frowned. "I feel terrible. It's because of me that you spent all your time here. I hardly even remember this place."

Amethyst's smile was soft and sincere. "It's kind of you to feel bad, but it was never your fault, nor was it ever mine. We couldn't control who we were."

"So they never looked into separating us?" Rei asked.

"Well, once I fell in love with Prince Diamond, I pretty much demanded that we find a cure. Every chance I got, I poured over every bit of information I could get my hands on. I knew that there just had to be a way for us to separate instead of being forced to share forever. That wouldn't work, now would it? But unfortunately, the only information I ever came across was for schizophrenia or possession. No one seemed to have our problem, or if they did, they didn't write about it. We are doomed to forever be like this."

"There has to be a way," Rei insisted, fist slamming onto the arm of her chair. "Something can be done, someone must know something. It's not fair to either of us if there isn't! I cannot bare the thought of knowing that you've been trapped in here for who knows how long, or the idea of being trapped here forever myself. We both have lives, have family and friends, people who love us and would miss us if we disappeared. If not for us, we have to do it for them."

"I have a sister," Amethyst said. She then laughed. "I guess the proper wording is 'we' have a sister." The image of a little girl of no more then eight appeared. Her light green hair was in a braid and she wore a bright yellow dress, a big smile planted on her face. "Her name is Peridot, or Peri as I call her. Our father got married when we were five to a woman named Topaz, who I don't care much for."

"She's adorable," Rei said. She felt so strange staring at this little girl, a girl who shared her blood and her father. A sister. She'd always wanted one and she'd had one all along. Well two, Rei figured, if you counted Amethyst.

"I don't know what became of any of them. They may have died in the great freeze, the one that came as a result of the battle with Queen Beryl, or perhaps they're still alive and waiting on Nemesis. Diamond—well, he didn't sound too hopeful. They do not have their powers, and I barely have any of what I am used to, save what I can draw from yours." She smiled. "We share powers. We are both psychic, both fire readers. The intensity of yours, your amazing abilities are so amazing because you have twice the power in you. Your powers partially draw on the Nemesis blood in your veins, while mine come from the Martian in mine. The only downside to a separation, if possible, would be that we would lose some of our strength."

"I wonder if we can control this," Rei said suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Amethyst asked.

"Well, if we truly have such amazing powers, maybe we have power enough to influence our change ourselves. Maybe we can split the time ourselves and make sure it is fair. I'd never keep you in here too long, and I'm sure you'd do the same for me. Maybe we can attempt to keep on living our separate lives that way," Rei suggested.

"Oh Rei, you're so optimistic. Even if we can change ourselves, even if we did split the time equally, there is no living separate lives, happily at least. What if one of us got married, or even both? What if one of us got pregnant? What if we got separate jobs and wanted to live in separate parts of the world and wanted to dye our hair blonde? It would be wonderful to figure out how to change ourselves at will, and I can promise to always keep the right time schedule, but what kind of a life would we be living if we did that? It would never be full, never be honest, and never be just ours. We need to be separated."

-End of chapter

Was it as awful as I thought…? Like I said, I'm powering through! I've got new stuff started and a definitive ending, so yay! I look forward to actually finishing this in the near-ish future! Thank you to my lovely readers and please be dears and review so I know how you feel!


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